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Akio MoriwakiAs head of global marketing for the AEC Industry at Dassault Systèmes, Mr. Moriwaki launches and promotes groundbreaking Industry Solution Experiences including "Optimized Construction," "Façade Design for Fabrication," and "Civil Design for Fabrication." He is a member of buildingSMART.

Well I am not so sure that I would like to start a career in engineering knowing I was blundering in order to learn. But his point is bluntly put – that what we call knowledge is gained through making mistakes.

In other words, engineers push the envelope in design, making things bigger or lighter until they fail and then seeking out what went wrong.

Kengo Kuma and Associates (KKAA) have taken on larger and more complex projects, and expanded around the globe. Through this growth, as KKAA worked to maintain data accuracy, a strain was put on its previous 3D modeling software.

The company therefore adopted the 3DEXPERIENCE platform on the cloud—and the Design for Fabrication industry solution experience—to accurately manage a wide variety of parameters in real-time, across multiple disciplines, during the development of architectural projects.

While architects once straddled a chasm between creative thinking and technical knowhow, that gap has closed in recent years. Technical tools continue to blow away the restrictions that have hindered architecture in the past.

John Cerone, director of Virtual Design and Construction, for SHoP Architects, explained that architects are increasingly looking to step outside of their traditional roles.

“The AEC industry is restricted by a lot of traditional methods. We’ve realized that to create the design you want, you have to step out and speak with the people manufacturing the pieces and parts,” Cerone commented.

David Wong (left), head of the Additive Manufacturing Innovation Center, Nanyang Polytechnic, explained with John Cerone, director of Virtual Design and Construction, SHoP, how new manufacturing processes are pushing possibilities in architecture.

Additive Manufacturing Creates New Opportunities

One of the technologies delivering new freedom to design professionals is additive manufacturing.

David Wong, head of Additive Manufacturing Innovation Center, Nanyang Polytechnic University in Singapore, shared the stage with Cerone to explain how the growth of this new manufacturing process isn’t just transforming the possibilities available through architecture—it’s also pushing the design process further as design and manufacturing professionals together explore the need for new processes.

A dedication ceremony for the Chrysalis — part sculpture, part amphitheater, part park pavilion — tucked in the woods of Columbia, Maryland, allowed the community and project stakeholders alike to fully experience the structure’s scale and precision firsthand.

Despite the widespread adoption of BIM tools among design professionals, the AEC industry is still in many ways at the surface of the true benefits BIM platforms can offer.

“BIM should not be seen as just a way to do a beautiful 3D image from the project, but as a tool for true collaboration that should be the industry standard,” commented Jonathan Riondet, AEC industry solution technical director for Dassault Systèmes, during a recent presentation at BIM World.

At the Design in the Age of Experience 2017 AEC Hackathon, we brought 13 CATIA R&D experts from Dassault Systèmes together with 17 architectural design professionals from the world’s most progressive firms, including:

Zaha Hadid Architects

SHoP Architects

HKS Architects

Kengo Kuma and Associates

Morphosis

ZAHNER

CO Architects

New Jersey Institute of Technology

CadMaker

The objective of the hackathon was to create innovative building designs in under 24 hours with CATIA’s latest generative modeling applications on the 3DEXPERIENCE platform.

Imagine the possibilities if you could design buildings that combine the artistry of stunning craftsmanship with the science of building.

Over the last several decades, the Architecture, Engineering & Construction (AEC) industry has required cost effective project delivery, while customers still demand high quality and advanced systems design. The fragmented processes across designers, architects, engineers and fabricators combined with traditional design tools, have contributed to this by constraining the possibilities for design.

The good news is that many leading companies have found ways to break down those barriers to seamlessly connect design to fabrication. As a result, they can unleash creative potential and standout from their competition, without sacrificing deadlines or budget.

Architecture is at the crossroads of technology, society, and material sciences. As illustrated by The Economist in the infographic below, the major trends dramatically influencing the future of our built environment are: